Signature slow-down unit of folding machine

Abstract

A signature conveying apparatus is disclosed which is structured simply and which enables a stable high-speed operation to be performed when a chopper-folding operation is performed by conveying the signatures to a chopper-folding unit at a low speed. A signature conveying unit of a folding machine incorporates a delivery cylinder which is rotated at a speed lower than the peripheral speed of a gripping cylinder and a speed-reduction cylinder. A high-speed conveying means conveys signatures received from the delivery cylinder and the speed-reduction cylinder at the same peripheral speed as that of the delivery cylinder and the speed-reduction cylinder. A speed-change conveying means receives the signatures conveyed from the high-speed conveying means to convey the signatures to a low-speed conveying means such that the conveyance speed is gradually reduced. The speed-change conveying means is provide with a plurality of pairs of upper and lower speed-change drive rollers disposed apart from one another for a distance shorter than the length of the signature. The low-speed conveying means conveys the signatures to chopper-folding units at a low speed.

What is claimed is:  
     
       1. A signature-conveying apparatus for a folding machine comprising: 
       a high-speed conveyor arranged to receive signatures from a speed-reduction portion of the folding machine and operable to convey the signatures at the same peripheral speed as that of said speed-reduction portion;  
       a low-speed conveyor arranged to receive the signatures and operable to convey the signatures at a low speed; and  
       a speed-change conveyor incorporating a plurality of speed-change drive rollers and a speed-change conveyor belt driven by the speed-change drive rollers for receiving the signatures conveyed from said high-speed conveyor and forcibly changing the speed so as to deliver the signatures to said low-speed conveyor such that the speed is gradually reduced, said speed-change conveyor belt having an inlet and arranged to receive signatures from the high-speed conveyor and an outlet end arranged to feed signatures to the low-speed conveyor, wherein the speed-change drive rollers are accelerated synchronously with a signature being delivered from the high-speed conveyor to the inlet end of the speed-change conveyor belt such that the inlet end of said speed-change conveyor belt travels at substantially the same speed as the high-speed conveyor when receiving a signature therefrom, and the speed-change rollers then gradually decelerate while transporting the signature such that by the time the signature reaches the outlet end of the speed-change conveyor belt the signature is discharged from the outlet end of said speed-change conveyor to said low-speed conveyor at substantially the same speed as that of the low-speed conveyor.  
     
     
       2. A signature-conveying apparatus for a folding machine according to claim  1 , wherein the speed-change conveyor further comprises a rotative pressing roller. 
     
     
       3. A signature-conveying apparatus for a folding machine according to claim  2 , wherein each of said high-speed conveyor, said speed-change conveyor and said low-speed conveyor incorporates upper and lower conveying belts arranged to hold the signatures therebetween and belt rollers around which the belts are arranged and which are rotated, and finder comprising a drive system for the speed-change drive rollers of said speed-change conveyor, the drive system including an acceleration/deceleration drive mechanism structured to be capable of changing the speed between a conveyance speed of said high-speed conveyor and a conveyance speed of said low-speed conveyor. 
     
     
       4. A signature-conveying apparatus for a folding machine according to claim  3 , wherein swinging mechanisms for causing an end of said upper conveying belt to float in synchronization with timing at which the signature is introduced into and discharged from said speed-change conveyor are disposed at inlet and outlet ends of said speed-change conveyor. 
     
     
       5. A signature-conveying apparatus for a folding machine according to claim  1 , wherein each of said high-speed conveyor, said speed-change conveyor and said low-speed conveyor incorporates upper and lower conveying belts arranged to hold the signatures therebetween and belt rollers around which the belts are arranged and which are rotated, and further comprising a drive system for the speed-change drive rollers of said speed-change conveyor, the drive system including an acceleration/deceleration drive mechanism structured to be capable of changing the speed between a conveyance speed of said high-speed conveyor and a conveyance speed of said low-speed conveyor. 
     
     
       6. A signature-conveying apparatus for a folding machine according to claim  5 , wherein swinging mechanisms for causing an end of said upper conveying belt to float in synchronization with timing at which the signature is introduced into and discharged from said speed-change conveyor are disposed at inlet and outlet ends of said speed-change conveyor. 
     
     
       7. A signature-conveying apparatus according to claim  1 , wherein the high-speed conveyor includes an upper belt looped about a plurality of rollers including at least one outlet-end roller located at an outlet end of the high-speed conveyor, the speed-change conveyor includes an upper belt looped about a plurality of rollers including at least one inlet-end roller located at an inlet end of the speed-change conveyor, and wherein the high-speed conveyor and speed-change conveyor share a common shaft on which the outlet-end roller and inlet-end roller are rotatably mounted. 
     
     
       8. A signature-conveying apparatus according to claim  7 , wherein the high-speed conveyor and speed-change conveyor each include a lower belt arranged proximate the respective upper belt such that signatures are held between the upper and lower belts, and wherein the common shaft is movably mounted so as to be movable away from the lower belt of the speed-change conveyor to cause the upper belt of the speed-change conveyor to float above the lower belt. 
     
     
       9. A signature-conveying apparatus for a folding machine for conveying signatures formed in a parallel folding portion of said folding machine and discharged from a gripping cylinder, said signature-conveying apparatus for a folding machine comprising: 
       two sorting devices arranged to receive signatures conveyed along the outer surface of said gripping cylinder and operable to direct the signatures alternately along one or another passage;  
       two high-speed conveyors respectively arranged to receive signatures sorted by said sorting devices and operable to convey said signatures at the same peripheral speed as that of said gripping cylinder;  
       two low-speed conveyors arranged to receive the signatures and operable to convey the signatures at a low speed; and  
       two speed-change conveyors each incorporating a plurality of speed-change drive rollers and a speed-change conveyor belt driven by the speed-change drive rollers for receiving the signatures conveyed from said high-speed conveyors and forcibly changing the speed so as to deliver the signatures to said low-speed conveyors such that the speed is gradually reduced, said speed-change conveyors each having an inlet end arranged to receive signatures from a respective one of the high-speed conveyors and an outlet end arranged to feed signatures to a respective one of the low-speed conveyors, wherein the speed-change drive rollers of each speed-change conveyor are accelerated synchronously with a signature being delivered from the respective high-speed conveyor to the inlet end of the speed-change conveyor belt such that the inlet end of each speed-change conveyor belt travels at substantially the same speed as the high-speed conveyor when receiving a signature therefrom, and the speed-change rollers then gradually decelerate while transporting the signature such that by the time the signature reaches the outlet end of the speed-change conveyor belt the signature is discharged from the outlet end of each speed-change conveyor to the respective low-speed conveyor at substantially the same speed as that of the low-speed conveyor.  
     
     
       10. A signature-conveying apparatus according to claim  9 , wherein each of the speed-change conveyors further includes a rotative pressing roller. 
     
     
       11. A signature-conveying apparatus for a folding machine according to claim  10 , wherein each of said high-speed conveyors, said speed-change conveyors and said low-speed conveyors incorporates upper and lower conveying belts arranged to hold the signatures therebetween and belt rollers around which the belts are arranged and which are rotated, and further comprising a drive system for the speed-change drive rollers of said speed-change conveyors, the drive system including an acceleration/deceleration drive mechanism structured to be capable of changing the speed between a conveyance speed of said high-speed conveyors and a conveyance speed of said low-speed conveyors. 
     
     
       12. A signature-conveying apparatus for a folding machine according to claim  11 , wherein swinging mechanisms for causing an end of said upper conveying belt to float in synchronization with timing at which the signature is introduced into and discharged from each said speed-change conveyor are disposed at inlet and outlet ends of each said speed-change conveyor. 
     
     
       13. A signature-conveying apparatus for a folding machine according to claim  9 , wherein each of said high-speed conveyors, said speed-change conveyors and said low-speed conveyors incorporates upper and lower conveying belts arranged to hold the signatures therebetween and belt rollers around which the belts are arranged and which are rotated, and further comprising a drive system for the speed-change drive rollers of said speed-change conveyors, the drive system including an acceleration/deceleration drive mechanism structured to be capable of changing the speed between a conveyance speed of said high-speed conveyors and a conveyance speed of said low-speed conveyors. 
     
     
       14. A signature-conveying apparatus for a folding machine according to claim  13 , wherein swinging mechanisms for causing an end of said upper conveying belt to float in synchronization with timing at which the signature is introduced into and discharged from each said speed-change conveyor are disposed at inlet and outlet ends of each said speed-change conveyor. 
     
     
       15. A signature-conveying apparatus for a folding machine for conveying signatures formed in a parallel folding portion of said folding machine and discharged from a gripping cylinder, said signature-conveying apparatus for a folding machine comprising: 
       one high-speed conveyor arranged to receive signatures discharged from said gripping cylinder and operable to convey said signatures at the same peripheral speed as that of said gripping cylinder;  
       two low-speed conveyors arranged to receive the signatures and operable to convey the signatures at a low speed;  
       one speed-change conveyor incorporating a plurality of speed-change drive rollers and a speed-change conveyor belt driven by the speed-change drive rollers for receiving the signatures conveyed from said high-speed conveyor and forcibly changing the speed so as to deliver the signatures to said low-speed conveyors such that the speed is gradually reduced, said speed-change conveyor belt having an inlet end arranged to receive signatures from the high-speed conveyor and an outlet end arranged to feed signatures to the low-speed conveyor, wherein the speed-change drive rollers are accelerated synchronously with a signature being delivered from the high-speed conveyor to the inlet end of the speed-change conveyor belt such that the inlet end of said speed-change conveyor belt travels at substantially the same speed as the high-speed conveyor when receiving a signature therefrom, and the speed-change rollers then gradually decelerate while transporting the signature such that by the time the signature reaches the outlet end of the speed-change conveyor belt the signature is discharged from the outlet end of said speed-change conveyor to said low-speed conveyor at substantially the same speed as that of the low-speed conveyor; and  
       a shorter for alternately sorting the signatures to the two low-speed conveyors, the sorter being disposed at an end of said speed-change conveyor.  
     
     
       16. A signature-conveying apparatus for a folding machine according to claim  15 , wherein the speed-change conveyor further includes a rotative pressing roller. 
     
     
       17. A signature-conveying apparatus for a folding machine according to claim  16 , wherein each of said high-speed conveyor, said speed-change conveyor and said low-speed conveyors incorporates upper and lower conveying belts arranged to hold the signatures therebetween and belt rollers around which the belts are arranged and which are rotated, and further comprising a drive system for the speed-change drive rollers of said speed-change conveyor, the drive system including an acceleration/deceleration drive mechanism structured to be capable of changing the speed between a conveyance speed of said high-speed conveyor and a conveyance speed of said low-speed conveyors. 
     
     
       18. A signature-conveying apparatus for a folding machine according to claim  17 , wherein swinging mechanisms for causing an end of said upper conveying belt to float in synchronization with timing at which the signature is introduced into and discharged from said speed-change conveyor are disposed at inlet and outlet ends of said speed-change conveyor. 
     
     
       19. A signature-conveying apparatus for a folding machine according to claim  15 , wherein each of said high-speed conveyor, said speed-change conveyor and said low-speed conveyors incorporates upper and lower conveying belts arranged to hold the signatures therebetween and belt rollers around which the belts are arranged and which are rotated, and further comprising a drive system for the speed-change drive rollers of said speed-change conveyor, the drive system including an acceleration/deceleration drive mechanism structured to be capable of changing the speed between a conveyance speed of said high-speed conveyor and a conveyance speed of said low-speed conveyors. 
     
     
       20. A signature-conveying apparatus for a folding machine according to claim  19 , wherein swinging mechanisms for causing an end of said upper conveying belt to float in synchronization with timing at which the signature is introduced into and discharged from said speed-change conveyor are disposed at inlet and outlet ends of said speed-change conveyor.